Reviews of Lips: Party Classics - Xbox 360

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This is probably the best of the Lips offerings thus far for overall singable/fun music. A good selection of songs from 60's, 70', 80's, 90's and 00's. Most of the songs have the original videos which is cool, especially of you grew up in the 80's with MTV. Some of the oldest songs (60's and some 70's) do not have videospresumaby because they didn't have videos then! In those cases Lips plays still images of the Artists in a slideshow-same as with previous versions.

There was no song listing on Amazon or Xbox's Lips's product page..so here it is...

Lips Party Classics 40 Songs

1. What's Up ~4 Non Blondes

2. Black Velvet ~ Alannah Myles

3. Rehab ~ Amy Winehouse

4. Doctor Jones ~ Aqua

5. Love Shack ~ The B-52's

6. Let's Get It Started ~ The Black Eyes Peas

7. Word Up ~ Cameo

8. Tubthumping ~ Chumbawumba

9. Rhythm of the Night ~ Debarge

10. Groove Is In The Heart ~ Deee-Lite

11. I Touch Myself ~ Divinyls

12. American Pie ~ Don McLean

13. Son Of A Preacher Man ~ Dusty Springfield

14. I Want To Know What Love Is ~ Foreigner

15. I Will Survive ~ Gloria Gaynor

16. Laid ~ James

17. You're Beautiful ~ James Blunt

18. Rock and Roll All Nite ~ Kiss

19. Sweet Home Alabama ~ Lynyrd Skynyrd

20. She Will Be Loved ~ Maroon 5

21. To Be With You ~ Mr. Big

22. These Boots Are Made For Walking ~ Nancy Sinatra

23. True Faith ~ New Order

24. Live Is Life ~ Opus

25. When A Man Loves A Woman ~ Percy Sledge

26. Every Rose Has Its Thorn ~ Poison

27. Brass In Pocket ~ The Pretenders

28. Shinny Happy People ~ R.E.M.

29. I'm Too Sexy ~ Right Said Fred

30. Addicted To Love ~ Robert Palmer

31. Kiss Me ~ Sixpence None The Richer

32. Wannabe ~ The Spice Girls

33. Friday I'm In Love ~ The Cure

34. My Sharona ~ The Knack

35. Unchained Melody ~ The Righteous Brothers

36. I Think We're Alone Now ~ Tiffany

37. It's Not Unusual ~ Tom Jones

38. Red Red Wine ~ UB40

39. Y.M.C.A ~ Village People

40. Is This Love ~ Whitesnake

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If you've ever played Lips games before, then this game should fit well like an old shoe. For those who've never tried it ... essentially Lips is the Xbox version of Singstar on the PS3. You get (mostly) authentic videos which you can sing to your hearts content. Basically it's a very awesome karaoke machine for your video game console.

As for the song choices in this game, I definitely liked it more than previous versions. I felt this time around there were more "good" songs that can easily light up a room and provide a few hours of quality entertainment for yourself or a group of friends. I also liked how they improved this game this time around by making it more focused on getting good scores and certain achievements as a result of it. I can't tell you how many times I sang "Every Rose Has Its Thorn" (I know, don't laugh) just to master the song and get on the top of the xbox leaderboards. This aspect of the game is definitely a highlight of the current Lips game that I felt was absent in previous installments. I definitely felt more addicted to the notion of constantly trying to improve my singing to get on the leaderboards, whereas in the past I used to just sing a song and move on to the next one without much thought about technique. This time around because the game automatically compares your results with the global leaderboards it definitely provides an improved sense of motivation to sing well.

Or if you're just a casual player, the song list is a nice collection of 80's and 90's dance, pop and alternative hits that most people who are music lovers during that time (like myself) would be familiar with. Whether if its "Let's get it started", "groove is in the heart", "friday i'm in love", "I will survive", "word up", "true faith" or "unchained melody" there definitely seems to be a nice sampling of songs that I think will get most music lovers off their chairs and singing away in no time.

One gripe I definitely have with this game is the fact you can't export your songs from previous Lips games. Like the issue with the previous installment, which people complained about as well, I see the same problem with this game. I am able to play the games from the disc, and also on my DLC library. However, if you want to play songs from other Lips games, you have to bring the disc and load it over. Kind of a pain in the butt, and frankly with the ease of exporting in the Rock Band and Guitar Hero series, Microsoft should really incorporate this element into the Lips series so you can have all your songs in one master list.

Otherwise, this game is excellent. For casual players, I'm sure you'll have fun and feel a blast of nostalgia when watching old videos from the old days. I know I enjoyed watching the 4 non blondes and had a real mind trip back to my college days. For the serious gamer, you probably already know that Lips (and Singstar) games are less forgiving when it comes to hitting vocal perfection when compared to the Rock Band series, so if you're really into hitting those notes and getting uber high scores for bragging rights, this game shouldn't disappoint either.

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I have had every Guitar Hero game and love that we can sing with them now, but as a woman it is hard to sing a lot of those songs. Lips does a good job of having a variety of songs. I like that you can watch the music video as you sing. There are two ways to follow the words also, which helps. When playing in a co-op some songs are split in to 2 different parts, with a background singer. Sometimes that can be harder to follow but it just adds a challenge. I now have all 3 Lips games, and am looking forward to new ones. There are hundreds of songs available to buy on Xbox live. I spent $10 on points and bought 5 songs. So that can put into perspective how much the additional songs cost. On Party Classics, there are more songs that are typical to karaoke. My friend and I make margaritas and play these games all night long!! The only bad thing is those microphones from all the other singing games do NOT work with Lips. You have to have the Xbox wireless mics, that are usually $25 each. This game said you can use other mics (I have a wired Rock Band mic with the controller built-in $45) and I could not get it to work. It would catch a few words but that was all. So if you are looking to start with Lips I suggest buying the bundle that comes with the microphones. (Lips comes with 2 and Number One Hits comes with 1)

Honest reviews on Lips: Party Classics - Xbox 360

Okay, I own practically every karaoke game for the 360, including Karaoke Revolution 2009, RB/LB, nearly the entire Guitar Hero and Band Hero series, and the entire Lips series (Lips, Number One Hits, and now Party Classics).

After being very disappointed with the original Lips, Number One Hits restored my faith in the product because it was Lips but polished in every way. Plus, Number One Hits had a much better song list than the original Lips.

I went into this thinking that Party Classics was just a song pack. But somehow, Party Classics is somehow software-wise weaker than Number One Hits which confuses me. The menus seems to move a little less smoothly than #1 hits. I still can't get the media center support to work with Lips. it would be awesome to have the thousands of songs i have in windows media center be instantly available in Lips. maybe it takes a really long time for Lips to detect all those songs but there's no progress bar or anything so i gave up after about 20 minutes.

there were some additions to the software, especially support for USB mics! but i had problems getting the USB mics to work with the wireless mics simultaneously. when i wanted to sing with usb mic, it was inactive and only the wireless mic was active. the menu for selecting which mic to use is confusing and i kept getting error messages. so i ended up doing the hokey pull-out-batteries-out-of-wireless-mic when i want to use the usb mics and then put them back in when i want to sing with the wireless mics.

also, since I thought Party Classics was a song pack, I thought you could just start singing. but it was really off so I had to resync the mics. for #1 hits, the autodetection determined it as 78 ms. for party classics, it found the lag to be 125 ms. but while the wireless mics sounded pretty good in #1 hits, they didn't sound good in party classics. i had lag problems even with autodetection. and the sound of the voice through the mics had the same artificial quality that was in the original lips.

this is where the usb mics shine. i tried the guitar hero mics and it sounded so much better than the wireless mics. i haven't tried my karaoke revolution mic yet (logitech) but i expect those to shine as well. i was able to hit multipliers that were unheard of with the wireless mics. however, the usb mics are gimped in terms of scoring because you lose the free points that the wireless mics offer by shaking them. if you're competing against someone and have really good vocals, you can overcome the free points that the wireless mics get. otherwise, it's hard to ignore the points. yeah, MS, try to make everyone favor the wireless.

also, MS partially fixed the disc swapping problems. if you're playing party classics and want to play a #1 hits song, you swap to the #1 hits disc and as long as you keep choosing #1 hits songs, there's no disc swapping. and once the #1 hits disc is in, the songs are marked differently so the #1 hits songs become the default songs and the other songs are marked as other disc songs.

however, if you want to play a song off the original Lips disc, you have the constant swapping again.

one last bad thing. this problem is becoming a problem again for me. in a game like Karaoke Revolution 2009 or Band Hero or Rock Band or Guitar Hero, you can easily know how to adjust your pitch and you feel like a stud when you can nail it. if you're singing too high, the on-screen indicator clearly tells you that you need to go lower. if you're too low, it'll tell you to go higher. however, in Lips Party Classic, it's still like the other Lips games. if you nail the pitch, you see it. but if you're off, it's hard to tell whether to go higher on the note or lower on the note. it just shows as a fuzzy miss. so you kind of sound like Tarzan as you're going from high to low to try to figure out what pitch the song wants.

but to finish off the review on a good note, the song list is just sick. plenty of awesome songs to sing. all the cheesy love ballads that I imagined singing to a girl are here. To Be With You. classic. this is a really good song list and a lot of people know these songs. and you can't help but laugh at some of the songs. songs that professional singers can pull off. but songs that people who don't have perfect pitch that sound crazy funny. songs like i touch myself. it sounds sexy and playful and funny when the divinyls played it. but when average people sing it, it's gut busting funny.

as always, the song library for the lips family is huge and awesome. they just need to tweak stuff to make this a truly great product. they need to find a way to fix the pitch bar. it's still much harder to read the pitch and the lyrics at the same time like in the other games. i know they don't want to copy the other games but sometimes copying is not such a bad thing.

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In this 3rd sequel to the Lips franchise you get a lot of classic songs. From 60's to 70's to 80' to 90's and songs for 2000 and beyond. I love the Lips games. I think they are soooo much fun. You can have awesome parties with this game. you get all kinds of good old music. There are songs that most people would know. You also get some not so popular songs (well I think so) in this game. All in all this is truely loads of fun. so I do recommend this game to anyone who loves to sing. Great for parties and great for the young and old.

Reviews of Microsoft XBOX 360 E 250GB Console

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List Price: $299.99
Sale Price: $239.99
Today's Bonus: 20% Off

So Microsoft decides to roll out another 360 redesign to clear out the 360 S stock in replace of this E model version which they say is quieter and faster but also has some differences.

1. The front power and eject buttons are actual buttons that you press now in replace to the touch sensitive buttons

2. The power bar connector is a whole new round connector

3. The av cable connector is a 3.5mm headphone jack which means the composite cable from the original and S model will not work. By the looks of it i think there would be no component cables available and not sure how it would work with the 3.5mm jack

4. The back has 2 usb ports instead of 3

5. The digital optical connector has been removed so if you want 5.1 surround sound you have to use HDMI for your receiver. probably not a big deal for some but for me i use digital optical out because my receiver doesn't do HDMI standby pass thru.

Kinect port, ethernet port and HDMI port are still there, this console uses the same hard drive from the 360 S model and runs a tad quieter but not much, it is not that much smaller than the 360 S vertically and horizontally.

So those are the differences, If you have a original 360 console and want to upgrade then go for it but keep in mind that you will not have digital optical out and will not have component out, just composite and HDMI.

If you have the S Model already then pass on this version, not worth the price for this console that eliminates digital optical out and component out and 1 usb port.

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We had two consoles of the Jasper chipset, which was one of the first of the original designs that pretty much didn't "red ring." We've had those for several years without issue. I liked the Slim model but we had no reason to buy it.

I did some remodeling and wanted to replace the white xbox with the new black one (and it has a bigger HD). It looks great and is significantly smaller. It's smaller than the PS3 Slim model sitting next to it. Compared to the PS3 Slim and the Jasper/original 360, it is very, very quiet. Virtually silent when the disc is not spinning.

I haven't quite found the actual specs, but this should be the lowest power consuming xbox to date.

I agree some of the Slim bundles are better values, because you can get the same xbox with the Slim bundled with a couple of games for the same price. Still, I like the look of this one better than the slim--more conservative and modular.

Yes, you do lose some of the ports--no more component video, and an audio out that's no longer there, so be warned. Still, I just use the ethernet, HDMI, and power, so it's fine.

The power brick is the smallest I've seen so far on the 360.

Best Deals for Microsoft XBOX 360 E 250GB Console

I had a black Xbox 360 elite that I have been wanting upgrade for a while. It was so loud and sometimes Arkham City wouldn't load for me; I had to restart the console. Since GTA V and Arkham Origins are coming out soon, I finally took the plunge. I traded in my old Elite and got this new "E" console.

First things first: I LOVE the way this console looks compared to my old one. This one blends in so well with my tv stand and the rest of my setup. Secondly, this thing is SO quiet. I read it's not more quiet than the slim, but coming from an elite, it's truly night and day. I don't hear a peep out of this new console and I love it! Another thing I love about this new console is the built in wifi. No more networking adapter protruding from the back on my console like with my elite. I also love how they brought actual buttons back for the power and disc tray. I personally do not like the touch sensor on the slim. Another thing I personally love about this new console is how they removed some inputs that I personally had no use for in the first place. Many have complained about the lack of an optical and component video inputs. This is not an issue for me. I have been connecting all of my home theater gear to my AVR via HDMI for years. I also use a 5.1 surround setup; I don't use gaming headphones that need the optical audio input. I find the back is less cluttered with the lack of those inputs.

All in all. I'm totally happy with my upgrade. I love it! Having said all of that, if you already own the slim, I wouldn't recommend this new console, unless you just love the new look and don't need the optical or component inputs. If you're not already an xbox owner, and are planning to get one for GTA V like I'm assuming some people are, this is a great one to get, again, if you don't need optical or component. I love this new console. It fits my needs perfectly with no extra bells and whistles that I would never use anyway.

Honest reviews on Microsoft XBOX 360 E 250GB Console

In case there was any doubt, the 360 E is a reduced-cost console, although not necessarily reduced price (more on that in a minute). It gives buyers something new to look at for a few months until the Xbox One gets into the stores. Undoubtedly its purpose is to give xbox sales a little boost between now and Christmas, when the Xbox One will probably be in short supply.

Considering this, its definitely not for hardcore gamers who want the best and the latest.

The Xbox 360 E is for a very specific niche:

1) Parents who want to pacify their kids with "something" new without buying the newest and the best.

2) Businesses/youth groups that want to have an Xbox on the premises but don't care about the Xbox One.

3) People who actually need a new xbox 360, not an Xbox One and not a 360 Slim, at this moment (I fell into this category)

Microsoft has done a good job of tailoring this console to that particular market. There are a lot of gamers who are NOT in the group I just described. If you are a gamer and you don't fit nicely into that group, you really shouldn't be looking at the Xbox 360 E. Its not made for you.

In short, the Xbox 360 E is purely about marketing and distribution. It is NOT about raising the bar of gaming. It doesn't even try to be the best Xbox 360 ever. Fortunately, it doesn't pretend to be anything its not.

For those of you who are considering the Xbox 360 E for one of the reasons above, I think its a pretty good console. It fills the gap between the Xbox 360 slim and the Xbox One, which is yet to be released. As a "gap" device that is probably only going to be available for a year or two while the Xbox One is offered, so you do want to consider purchasing it carefully.

The Xbox 360 E has most of the features the "general public" needs, and everything else has been removed. I think Microsoft has done a better job than the recently released Wii Mini Nintendo Wii Mini Console (LIMITED EDITION) + Bonus Wii Remote in terms of what they kept: the Xbox 360 E is a fully functional console, even if you don't get optical audio, RCA A/V jacks, and other things that are still in use in homes today. If you buy this unit, you should intend to hook it up to your TV with HDMI. Thats a major change, and, if you are still using an older TV you may want to take note.

Its pretty safe to purchase it because there is an enormous library of games available for it, both new and used.

And what about that price? Well, there is only one way Microsoft and the Retailers can keep a low cost solution in the news: to highly publicize price drops when they happen. They are still in a "start high and lower the price over time" strategy.

Expect to see the Xbox 360 E go on a discount before Christmas. Thats just so they can say "reduced price" which catches the ear of many a parent and grandparent. As I said, the xbox 360 e is strictly about marketing. And now that you know this, you should know what decisions to make going forward.

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My husband's XBOX finally gave up after about 6-7 years when the dog knocked it over. We needed a replacement. We grabbed this on Amazon when it was on sale. This is obviously the upgrade from his older one, and he is very happy with it. He said it seems to run more smoothly than his older one did. The headset it came with is kind of cheap/chintzy, but he has a big fancy headset he bought for his older one that works just fine.

Cheap Age of Pirates 2: City of Abandoned Ships - PC

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I played the previous game AOP Car. Tales and many things that was wrong with that game seem to be fixed or added in this version. You can now fulley explore islands and find hidden treasures like in the Disney version of Pirates of the Car. which was suppose to be Sea Dogs 2.

Fighting has a few new moves but is pretty much the same as you can parry. But the game is still clunky when moving your charactor on land or in hand to hand battles.

breakdown:

Gameplay: B (many new quests and better sotryline bring this score up and the new roll playing P.I.R.A.T.E.S system bring this score up)

Plot: C (don't really have one as its a open ended game)

Value: B($29.99 is really too high of a price in a old tech game more like $19.99)

Sound: B(voice acting is not this games strong point)

Graphics: C(need better island and land textures as well as town buildings)

Replay Value: B (neverending amount of quests and things to do make this one long game)

Overall: B (average pirates roll playing game that is a rare gem and worth playing for those who don't mind its game flaws and outdated graphical textures)

Ship combat remains the same but some new features have been added such as traveling in a row boat to another friendly ship (not enemy) and is a neat addition. You can advance time as well but this was present in the last version. Now it seems you can install new canons on your ship and have up to four allied ships at one time traveling with you.

The games quests are more numerous but some seem tacked on. I only played through the beginning of them and they are vague on telling you hints or what exactly to do to complete them. Still some are really interesting such as treasure hunting maps.

The world map is much larger incompassing most of the Car. sea and even Central America and Northern South America. You have new cities such as Belize, Puerto Bello, Panama, Caracos Trinidad & Tobago and Lake Texcoco Tenochtitlan in Central America. It now seems to take a good deal of time to cross the entire map area but makes it more real.

The new PIRATES roll playing system adds new characteristics such as Power, Insight, Endurance and Success. There are seven total. The other charactor attributes from the last game are present and you can choose from four classes such as a Adventurer, Merchant and Corsiar the hardest since it means a pirate class (a enemy to all).

The same countries are present like the Dutch which are well rounded, Spain the most powerful, England Spain's spiritual enemy and France the Dutch ally and England top rival. Of course there is a pirate faction but this is hard since you are a out cast and I would recommend playing for one of the other nations above first then going for the pirate class after you gain experience with the game.

The graphics are outdated and the resolution only goes to 1280x1024 which on a 22' wide screen monitor the game looks kind of distorted. Textures especially land on the islands need updated badly but charactor and ship textues look decent. Water textures are this games strong point of course but other textures mentioned need updated.

Sounds are meh. You have background music that is OK but I found it annoying as it repeats over and over so I turned it off. Most charactors have one intro voice and after that its text when talking to individuals. Combat sounds such as canons and gun sound weak but pass for immersion.

Overall you have a game here that Age of pirates Car. Tales should have been. If you don't want to spend the money on this just downlaod the super mod for the above mentioned game providing you own it already and if you don't I would buy this game instead as it would be much less hassle.

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For those of you having problems playing this game in Windows 7, blame Microsoft and it's security features! This game runs perfect in Windows 7 both 32 AND 64 bit, just don't install it to C:\Program Files\. Install instead to something like C:\Games\City of Abandoned Ships\ it will run just fine from there! Microsoft in it's infinite wisdom decided to treat everything installed in C:\Program Files\ as protected operating system files, and to access programs or files in those directories properly, you must either be logged in as Administrator or set everything to run as Administrator. Save yourself the headache and install it to C:\Games\ instead!

There are a few other technical issues I won't get into here, but if you want real support for this game, go to \\ Playlogic's marketing and support for this game have been absolutely pathetic and almost non existent! This game is not perfect, but it is a very good game and well worth the original $30 price tag, for $10, it's a steal!

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I have "Steelkeys 6G" the mistype years series. the only reason i menton it is it is a horrible key board for typing and gaming, it is well, just a horrible keyboard, durible but badly registered keys. However, I have six other keyboards and all of them don't register on this game. Much. A command either goes through or not. You can usually execute mouse keys but you can't always go into "combat mode" even when someone is attacking you. In additon, firing cannons is horrendous and I just let the crew do it. thier is no clear reload progress meter as in "Cid Meyer's Pirates!". the graphcis and imersion are better in this game, for it is a first person(heads up third person) perspective, unlike Cid Meyres which was more a point and click graphic adventure on land and did not have the true persepctive on you on your ship, two pluses to get you emersed in the game, Cid Meyres did not. Also, this is not generic as CId Meyer's version but it is hard to issue key commands. If you start a new game, thier is a chance(in ship, not captain blood) your "cut scene" will not play out and you will be stuck on the boat with no insident to get the plot out of the way. If your crew(hand-to-hand sparring instructors) don't show up, you must not only restart the game, but reboot your PC, that is the only way I found to solve the problem, and sometimes it doesn't. If you play either the dutch guy or the spanyard this happens, not with Captain Blood as you begin on dry land. One important thing of note, do not pick fights unarmed, your "pirate" can't fight unarmed. He just stands there with his arms down(the moron yetusz) taking it. If the police take your sword and then you try to, for example, plan a riot to escape enslavement, you won't succed you will have every soldier, slave, woman, and her freggen dog and all the world attacking you and you will not be able to do anything, it maybe a glitch as it is truely a 'showstopper" when it happens to "Captain" BLood in the beginning town. You can 'sneak" a wheapon past the home where you rescue the provisioner but you will ALWAYS get caught, you cannot open the gate you cannot sneak past and you ABS-o-LUte-ly will not get past the gards in the slave plantaton and the slaves will attack you too! How nice to be appreciated!

Honest reviews on Age of Pirates 2: City of Abandoned Ships - PC

If you are fan of games with an RPG element and enjoy the Golden Age of Piracy, this is a game that you will thoroughly remember for years to come.

However, I have to give warning for those that have not played the previous titles from Akella including Sea Dogs and Age of Pirates. This game is much deeper that Sid Meier's Pirates! This is the game that AoP and Sea Dogs should have been, but the learning curve is very steep initially. Fully compatible with WIN 7 and looks sharp and has good atmospherics. You can easily modify the system.ini file to allow proper widescreen resolutions up to 2650X1600 in proper aspect ratio. Probably the one major complaint I have is the interface. Its archaic. Controls for the player are not naturally intuitive, and don't "flow" like say the Prince of Persia series, as keyboard and mouse is the predominant means of movement. Using a gamepad is NOT the best option here. Expanded options for fighting with multiple types of attacks and and a more realistic sail model are the real updates here. Contrary to some opinions, there is a plot but really only if you play as the first primary character, Peter Blood. Due to the depth of the game, only hardcore players will ever see the true ending as quests can be incredibly difficult without first building up your character even at moderate difficulty.

Overall, if you willing to accept the interface issues, and get past the gigantic learning curve at the beginning the game, the whole procress starts to pick up steam as you gather experience. Being able to face down a Man-o-War with a single frigate, board and defeat the crew through multiple levels of decks until you face the captain for capture is exciting. The number of side quests is substantial, and will literally take hundreds of hours to complete. This is game where at the beginning you really have to pick your fights carefully. If you expect to take on hundreds of soldiers and cut them down like bundles of wheat, you will be disappointed, as death comes quickly to the unprepared.

One final note, I highly recommend downloading the fan-made COAS Combined Mod 3.1.5 which fixes a number of bugs and glitches, massive graphic overhaul, a modified trade system so you may be a peaceful ply the seas, adds 12+ new playable characters and questions, a plethora of new items and weapons, and most importantly dozens of new ships and sea battle capability. This pushes the game install well over the 15 GB range. Even after the main quests are finished (which are incredibly complicated), there are still many new areas to explore.

Play as Captain Jack Sparrow and defeat Davey Jones and the Flying Dutchman!

UPDATE MAJOR Upgrade 31 MAY 12

Age of Pirates City of Abandoned Ships just took another major facelift and upgrade.

The most definitive age of piracy "sandbox" game ever created.

Long after I posted this review Pirates Ahoy! and modders finally have developed the game into the full product it should have been back in 2009.

Gentlemen of Fortune 1.2 was released in late MAY 2012, and has brought the game to over 16 GB. Ship models have continued to surpass all expectations.

Even after playing the game for over 3 years, it still keeps me coming back to start over. I have yet to finish all the major quests, including the selling your soul to the devil to be granted immortality or the naval books and knowledge for reading. Just as challenging as it was after the first round of "bug fixes" and control issues, but playing the game in full 2560X1600 resolution is breathtaking on a large monitor or 1920X1080 on a HDTV is equally as impressive. Build your empire for the colonial power of your choice after a lot of hard work! A MUST buy for the pirate enthusiast with a solid gaming computer.

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It does have it's glitches, but it is more fun than it's predecessors. Wish they had gotten to patch Sea Dogs and make it better. I liked that interface better where you don't have to be evading other pirates, mostly because it was easier to control your own game experience and when you got attacked. Here you can lose your ship from one bad move.

It's graphically great and the music is nice. Combat could be easier, but then I could play the game at an easier difficulty... It does, however, not seem tiered. Encounters should be moderated between easy and hard for the player's level, rather than getting a very high level pirate on you, which you could never beat (again, I probably should just adjust my difficulty).

Overall a very good game, must have if you have been following since Sea Dogs!

Review of New - Microsoft Xbox LIVE 12 Month Gold membership Gaming Card

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Every year we renew our xbox live subscription, my son can't do without it. Very entertaining since my son is an only child. He get to play with people all across the world.

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Discount Rabbids: Alive & Kicking

Customer Ratings:

Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program My family has been playing Rabbids for a few days now and it is a game that the entire family loves. The game is rated E-10+. My 4 and 7 year-olds are able to play the games but three in particular are for more mature children, those being Buttock-o-gram, Horse Jockey, and Silhouet.

Also a warning about the game Headbutts: This game could cause injury. Please bend at the waist and rock or "headbutt" with your entire torso and not your neck. Make sure your neck is always aligned with your torso and don't jar it. It's still possible to play this safer way and win. No need to head butt and tweak your neck and injure yourself.

While the menu is fairly user friendly to maneuver, it is often easier to use a control. The "hand" version is very sensitive and with so much on the menu, it is easy to miss the option you are trying to choose.

The directions are sometimes vague and that can be frustrating in some of the games.

There is no "exit" to the party games once they are started. The party games have the potential to last for several hours. An option to exit would be nice.

The disc has 34 Quick Play games, 3 party games (one which utilizies the quick play games), there is an extra category that I haven't yet explored and then some additional features that I also didn't explore as of yet.

The quick play games can accommodate 1-4 players (depending on the game). The party games can accommodate up to 16 players.

A brief rundown of the quick play games. I may have the names of the games a bit wrong. I was trying to jot down notes in between games and must have been really into the games as I couldn't read some of my handwriting.

1. Hacked OffUp to 2 players. Think old time magic shows where the magician saws his assistant in half. The rabbids are in a tower of blocks. The players work together to saw the block, then kick it out of the way.

2.Udder NonsenseUp to 3 players. You are a cheerleader and must follow the moves of the cow mascot. Examples of the moves are the chicken and the madador. Fun types of movements.

3. Slapping StationUp to 2 players. The Rabbids are hangning out of train cars. You must slap them as they go by, reaching or squatting depending on where they are. If two players are slapping, they are instructed to switch sides.

4. Crazy SalesUp to 2 players. You are a security guard in a mall. You must run and punch your way through a crowd of Rabbids.

5. Rabbids in the Hole1 player. This one has several levels that can be unlocked. Think old school Donkey Kong type of screen. You have to maneuver 3 rabbids into a designated area by pressing buttons to make ramps and floors to get the beam you want them on.

6.Flaming balls of fireUp to 2 players. Firestation. There is a fire pole on each side of a truck where two rabids are roasting marshmallows. The balls of flaming marshmallows get loose and the player must reach and squat to move their firefighter up and down the pole to deflect the fire. Much like old school Pong. Very fun.

7. Salmon Rush DayUp to 2 players. Swim upstream like a salmon trying to hit some targets and avoid some obstacles. Full use of body in this one.

8. Rabzilla-Up to 2 players. The monster Rabizilla is throwing things. A target appears in the spot you must reach for in order to keep the projectiles from hitting you.

9. Life's A Beach-Up to 2 players. Crazy Rabids in diving masks are making their way toward you. You must pump and aim water at them before they reach you.

10. Hot Dogs in Danger-Up to 2 players. You are in a hot dog suit and protecting a bunch of hot dogs. You must block the rabids with your weiner suit and then shake them off so that you can block more.

11.Pumped UpUp to 2 players. You are a body builder. There is a picture of the pose you must stand in. Do this and your muscles pump up.

12. Rabbid -o-meter-1 player. The Rabbid is in a car wash. The player must MAKE NOISE to get the rabbid to walk to the obstacles to hurt it. Not a fan of the noise making.

13. Snot Funny-1 player. I thought this one was hard. A rabbid sneezes. You must spin to make a fake boogie fling to the rabbid. I wasn't successful at this game at all.

14. Tenderfoot Dance-Up to 2 players. Players move around to avoid projectiles.

15. Wack-a-Rabid-Up to 2 players. Stomp and kick the rabbids that appear from the ground.

16.Sauce Wars-Up to 2 players. A rabbid makes a mess on the floor. Move your feet as if you were speed skating to clean up the mess.

17. Guitar ZeroUp to 2 players. This game has levels/songs to unlock. This is a family favorite. Follow color coded notes to "catch" them on your guitar.

18. Big Brother-Up to 4 players. Another faily favorite. You are standing behind 2 oblivious rabbids. You wiggle and dance. When it looks like they are going to turn around, you must run and hide. So much fun.

19. Now You See Me-Up to 4 players. You are in a dark room. The rabids have a spotlight that they are shinging in the window. You must duck and jump to avoid being detected by the light.

20. Inner Journey-Up to 4 players. You sit on the floor for this game. You lean forward to move through the body of a rabbid. Some targets you want to hit, some you want to avoid.

21. Silhouet-Up to 4 players. This is one of the games that is iffy for younger children. You are in the shower, behind a curtain. An image appears on the curtain. You and the other players must maneuover your bodies to form that image. This is hard. The key isn't to fill the shadow but to point your body in the direction that the game wants you to. So, if you cheat, the shadow won't register. For example, one image was like a sumo wrestler squatting. I didn't necessarily fill the entire shadow but my feet and hands were in the right direction so I succeeded at that shape.

22. Ninja YoyoUp to 2 players.I still don't know how to play this game. It is like a bungi jump. I have yet to score points on this one.

23. D.J. Sniper-Up to 2 players. Another game that I don't really know how to play yet. You are supposed to "quick draw" once the disc is thrown. Again, no clue how to actually play this one since I have yet to score points on it.

24. Rabbid Skin. Up to 2 players. You have to dodge a target for 10 seconds.

25. Bon Appetit. Up to 2 players. Move your body to clean/suck up a trail of spaghetti sauce.

26. Buttock-o-gram. 1 player. This is another iffy game for young people. You face your rear to the Kinnect and must wiggle your booty in the same pattern that is shown on the game.

27. Horse Jockey-Up to 2 players. This one you are on a pretend horse. You have to kind of hump the horse to get it moving. This is the third game that is questionable for a younger audience.

28. Run Rabbid Run-Up to 2 players. You have to run over 80 meters within a certain amount of time. You have to exaggerate your leg movements for it to read them.

29. Rabbid-o-tron 1-Up to 2 players. This is a trivia/brain teaser type of game. The players must be able to read. You have a certain amount of time to read the question and look at the screen. Then the images go away and you have to choose the correct answer.

30. Rabbid-o-tron 2-Same as above but with a different type of question.

31. Rabbid-o-tron 3Same as above but with a different type of question.

32. Rabbid-o-tron 4-Same as above but with a different type of question.

33. Rabbid-o-tron 5-Same as above but with a different type of question.

34. Pie face-Up to 2 players. Use your body to move around the pie tin to "eat" it.

35. Scanner Surprise-Up to 2 players. Use your hands to clean off the xray film to see the silly xray.

There are 3 party games, Forfeits, The Kitten, and Carrot Juice. In the interest of getting this review posted quickly for hoiday shoppers, I am posting before having played The Kitten and Carrot Juice. I will update my review once I know what those games entail.

In Forfeits, up to 16 people can play. You set up a character for each player. Kinnect takes a photo of the player and the voice can be recorded. The Xbox picks a random Quick play game and tells which two players will play. The loser has loses points on their meter. He/she then has to do a stunt like singing their least favorite song or do an Irish dance. This is called a forfeit. The other players get to vote on whether the forfeitted player does a good job. If they vote yes (by standing by a thumbs up image), the player doens't lose any additional points on their meter. If they vote no (by standing next to a thumbs down sign), the player loses additional points on their meter. The XBox then chooses another game and players. Once a player's meter hits zero, they are out of the game. The final player with points on their meter wins.

Overall, I love Rabbids. I would buy it. My kids enjoy the quick games. They can easily play it for an hour and get in some exercise and burn off some energy.

Like I mentioned above there were a few games that my husband objected to...which surprised me considering some of the game he plays. So, I do feel the need to deduct a star for that because the games are geared toward minors.Not to say these wouldn't be really funny party games for adults. Anyway, I do recommend this.

It would be helpful if the game included an instruction bookelt and with cautions for the head butt game. But, it's still worth the retail price for what is offered on the disc.

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Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program I didn't know what to expect from this game. I thought it may have been one of those "throwaway" Kinect games and wouldn't be very good. Boy, was a wrong! This game is a Gem of mini-game fun! Not so much a party game as it is just a blast to play with multiple players. Our family had big laughs with this game and the wealth of mini-games made it a family favorite. Plus, as with many Kinect games, you get a decent workout! Between jumping, swimming, dancing and even playing the guitar, you get a pretty good workout and have fun doing it. His is one of the best kept Kinect secrets out there.

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I enjoy this game, but we thought it would be more fun for parties. When it came time to get a group playing we found it very slow paced. Just way too many time sinks: i.e. the games last like 1 minute then you have 4-5 minutes of set up, loading, photos, etc. Also, at our last party several people forfeited their match by accidentally moving their hand at the wrong time... which really messed things up and is IMHO a very poor design.

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Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program This game may be a cheap thrill to get the kids, but it just doesn't cut it for anyone else. The mini games are lacking and the forced, exaggerated motions that the player has to make to get the game to respond make things tiresome quickly. I was excited to see the rabbids in action; however, I quickly grew bored. I understand that they are forcing Kinect at people, but this feels like a wasted opportunity, through and through.

If you see this on the discount stand and know some kid with Kinect, this might be worth it. If not, do not bother.

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Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program This is a fun, unique Kinect game that offers tons of variety and replay value, either alone, or with others. It is important to note that this is a collection of mini-games, not tied together with any story. If you are looking for depth in gaming, this isn't for you.

The games are fun and easy to learn. The Kinect controls are perfect, and I rarely noticed any mistracking or errors due to the Kinect sensor. The games utilize the full ability of Kinect: there's some stomping, throwing, bending, noise making -in essence, if there's something you can do with your body, this game will require you to do it. Some of the games will have you a bit winded, and if you play this game for quite some time, you're getting an effective workout.

The game makes great use of augmented reality to actually put you and your room in the game. One game in particular has you dodging bombs, lasers, and traps as they appear on your room's floor -along with you. Even the opening title sequence places your room into the window of an apartment. It's a great touch and attention to detail.

The real fun occurs when more than one player is involved. The single-player games are modified for multiple players to make use of more than one player -depending on the mode you select, it either requires cooperation or competition. The teamwork modes force you to think quickly and beat the clock, since most of the mini games are two or three minutes. It's great fun for family, especially since the game snaps photos during the sessions and displays them on-screen. A lot of times one player can't really see what the other player is doing, but the photos end up showing the "whole picture".

The game has incredible replay value due to several creative Xbox 360 achievements. The more you play, the more you'll unlock. In this game, it's about quantity and time -the developers made sure you'll come back again and again.

Overall, this is a great game that will make you smile often. It's the type of game that you can play for either a few minutes or for hours at a time, whenever you want to play something that doesn't require too much thinking. I recommend this as a great Kinect game that's really fun for either a single player or a small to large groups.

Review of Universal PS2 to PS3 Controller Adaptor

Customer Ratings:

I bought this adapter because I own a pretty big collection of PS2 games, and I already put away my PS2 for extra space. What am I going to use it for? Very niche titles that few of you will care.

First, obvious compatibility that most will care about is the Guitar Hero guitars for GH3 and RB. They work. Not 100%, but work. However don't expect it to work again on future GH titles since Activion is a money hungry-portholic-jackass and probably will change their game codes so this adapter won't work. Who knows?

Second, dual shock 2 also works well for PS2 and PS3 games. No tilting for sixaxis-supported PS3 titles, obviously.

Ok so the first and second part of my review are obvious ones that everyone else already talked about. My main test subjects for this review are

Taiko Drummaster, Beatmania, Pump it up, DDR, Tekken arcade stick, Street Fighter 15th anniversary controller by Nubytech, and Saturn PS2 controller.

Taiko Drummaster-Game only recognizes the drum as the dualshock2 controller. What this means is that you can't use the drum to navigate the menu, but WILL work once the song starts. All I could do was to use the controller, pick a song, pause, and then switch back to drum in order to play the game.

Beatmania-Game has an option to choose either controller or turntable controller. I pick turntable, and the controller works perfectly fine.

Pump it up-It works well

DDR-DOES NOT WORK. If it works, there might be lags. Sorry for the confusion.

Tekken arcade stick-It works, but I read somewhere that there are few millisecond lags for joystick inputs. Doesn't affect average Tekken/VF player like me, but experts might.

SF 15th anniversary edition controller pad by Nubytech-Tested with SF Anniversary Collection, and it works fine.

Saturn PS2 controller-My main reason for buying the converter was to use this controller for my fighting games like KoF and SF on my PS3. It was bit of a gamble since this controller is an import, but to my surprise it WORKS!!!

In conclusion, this converter does a pretty good job of letting you use most of the PS2 controllers for PS2/PS3 games on PS3.

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This converter worked fine until I've updated my system to 2.7. Now it's nothing more than paper weight. Good thing I didn't update my system while this thing was plugged in! I hear a lot of people bricked their PS3's and had to FORMAT all their saved games...

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As another poster has mentioned, a newer PS2 controller revision H does not appear to work at all. I found an older controller, and that worked, except that R2 didn't work for a driving game, so that is limiting. I also have a Logitech wireless controller, and that seemed to work perfectly! This was all with system version 2.60.

Note that I'm not using it for one of it's biggest features, using the PS2 guitar controllers.

I upgraded the PS3 system software to version 2.70, and now the TAC adapter locks up my PS3 when I plug it in, as a previous reviewer mentioned. (Also, as that previous poster mentioned, do not have this adapter plugged in while updating the system software!) So, it looks like it won't work at all, now. Until updating the system software, it looked like it was going to be good enough, as I'd just use it with the Logitech controller, but this seems like a real problem.

Honest reviews on Universal PS2 to PS3 Controller Adaptor

Works perfectly (so far). Star power even works like it is supposed to.

Some of the other reviews said that you had to use the select button, but

this is not true--at least with MY guitar (Gibson). My wife said that she

thinks there may be a small lag, but I cant say that I have noticed it.

If you bought a 80gb PS3 like I did--and have been tearing your hair out

because the console will PLAY your old Guitar Hero games but your guitar

doesnt work--then this is your salvation :)

TAC deserves some kind of award for creating something that Sony should

have built INTO the 80gb PS3 if they were going to claim

'backward compatability' for the Guitar Hero Series; Who wants to play

GUITAR HERO with a controller?

*NOTE: You may need to reassign controller IDs so that you have an empty

slot for 1A (thats where your guitar needs to be located). You will also

need to keep a normal controller handy, as you will need it to exit the

games (PS2 guitars dont have the nifty little PS3 button).

Rock On!

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I'm guessing that most people are interested in this item for the same reason I was: to play PS3 Rock Band with a PS2 Guitar Hero controller. To cut to the chase, I plugged it in and it worked perfectly.

As a side note, I've been letting my 2-year-old play with the PS2 GH guitar for a while now, and it still works. Good luck trying that with the Rock Band guitar. :)

I also used it to play Guitar Hero 1 for the PS2 on my PS3 (note that it's a 60GB PS3, which is hardware-compatible with PS2 games). It worked, but it initially recognized the guitar as controller #2, even though I turned on the console by inserting the game disc and didn't activate my PS3 controller. It was seeing the BD/DVD remote as controller #1. I pressed the PS3 button on the remote and changed it to controller #2, and presto, the guitar became controller #1 and worked fine.

There are only two minor issues that kept me from awarding this five stars:

1. The controller number LEDs don't work. (The connection LED does.) I don't care enough to mail it back for a replacement.

2. The included documentation is feeble. I had to check the online FAQ to figure out why GH1 wasn't working at first. The information in the package should have been more clear.

So, to sum up, the doc is poor and the build quality may be questionable, but the product does what it's supposed to and does it very well.

Cheap Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness

Customer Ratings:

[Note: This is coming from a 21-year-old reviewer]

I don't see why people are having a problem with this game. Personally, I was a big fan of the 3d-cartoony style of RPGs from when they first made big splashes on the Dreamcast. Games like Grandia, Skies of Arcadia... I just love how these games are done, and Pokemon XD is no exception.

So what the XD for? An "extra dimension" of play. Apparently, all this really means is that you get a new character, a new storyline, and get to set out on the usual Pokemon adventures. Which isn't badI haven't played a Pokemon game yet I didn't like (excluding the smaller spinoff games, of course). This game supports the full cast of characters from Sapphire / Ruby / Emerald, and that's a whole lotta Pokemon.

You start as (since you name yourself, I'll call the character Hero), a kid who finds out, as usual, that you're responsible for saving the world by battling cute little monsters with monsters of your own. This time, you're given a sort of cybernetic arm attachment and headset that allows you to analyze and capture Shadow Pokemonwho must be converted back to the "light side" through love and affection in order to regain their former power.

What's new? If you played Colliseum, basically nothing. There's a new story, and the new Shadow Lugia Pokemon wandering the continent. Other than that, however, you'll only want this game if you just enjoy "catching them all" that much.

For fans like me who missed Colliseum, but have played the original games, you get to experience Pokemon in a well-thought-out 3d setting that's just gorgeous. Shadow Pokemon come equipped with Shadow type moves when you get them, so Pokemon you never would have thought about bringing out before suddenly become extremely useful as you'll always have Shadow moves to fall back on. Very nice. Speaking of whichyes, you have to steal Shadow Pokemon from the villians who use them for battling. What you'll really do is defeat all of the opponent's other Pokemon and from there, it's no different from capturing rare Pokemon in earlier gamesonly this time, the enemy can't run away, and if you accidentally defeat it instead of capturing, you can re-battle almost any time you want!

Never played Pokemon? It's an extremely easy to learn game, complete with insanely cute and cool Pokemon to battle, and it's family-friendly, as not even the wildest situations would rate above PG.

A lot of reviewers have said you can't catch wild Pokemonand that's not exactly true. There are many "spots" where you can leave out treats and try to capture wild Pokemonleaving more treats means Pokemon stay longer, so they're easier to capture. It's not quite like crawling through the grass in the old games, but it gets the job done. I saw a few other reviewers comment that converting the Shadow Pokemon takes too longjust through battling in the early game, I was able to cleanse more than one Pokemon per hour of play, and that included time it took to unlock an area to complete the process. Doesn't seem so bad to me! Plus, I haven't even opened up the secondary cleansing method available in the game.

OverallIt's another Pokemon game, and a pretty good one. It's colorful, it's cute, and it's been extremely fun to play. If you're plopping down money for a Pokemon game, isn't that exactly what you expect? Sure, stealing Shadow Pokemon and cleansing their hearts is a little differentbut it's fun. The only people I wouldn't reccomend this game to are Colliseum fanatics who don't feel like starting the experience overthe two games are basically very similar. My girlfriend played Colliseum tons, and I could barely pull her away from the Gamecube on this one, but apparently other Colliseum fans feel otherwise.

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A fun trip back to the land of Orre with some familiar faces and some new friends. If you like Colosseum, you will find the upgrades in this game to be a godsend. I still don't enjoy the GameCube versions as much as the GBA ones, but everything that I WISHED I could do in Colosseum can be done in XD.

The main differences are as follows:

1. What we all wished for has happened .. you can SAVE the game anywhere, anytime, as often as you like! This was by far the most annoying thing that I discovered when I first bought Colosseum. I was so used to saving my game before any major battle, or before trying to catch a "one-shot-only" Pokemon. With XD, you no longer have to seek out a PokeCenter or a computer to save the game. This makes all the difference in the world. I am no longer "afraid" of what's lurking around the corner because I can always start over if I wasn't ready for what was lurking in the darkness! LOL

2. You can catch WILD POKEMON in XD. Another thing that I could never get used to in Colosseum. In XD, you are shown three "Poke Spots" where you leave treats (bait) for wild Pokemon. You have a Pokemon-detector that goes off if any wild Pokemon are munching your treats at a Poke Spot. Again, with the new "save feature", you can save the game and THEN go hunting. If you kill the wild Pokemon by accident, just restart.

3. There is a cool new Purification machine so you can purify up to NINE Pokemon at the same time. Very much a time saver. No more dragging around Pokemon that you never intend to use just to open up their hearts.

4. New story line. Some old towns, some new towns, but an interesting storyline throughout.

5. Graphics. Graphics are noticibly better in XD.

6. Shadow Moves. Instead of one shadow move, all shadow pokemon automatically come with at least two. There are many possible shadow moves .. all with different strengths and effects. Much more interesting.

7. New Pokemon. There are (at least) two new Pokemon. You can't catch them, but I think their appearance foreshadows a new batch of Pokemon which will probably be available in the next version of the game. One character even mentions that new Pokemon are being spotted all over the land.

All in all, much better than Colosseum. Just adding a few simple changes (most notably the "save feature") brings a whole new enjoyment to an older game. Pokemaniacs will not be disappointed with this purchase.

NOTE: As I have suggested in my other reviews, buy the NINTENDO POWER guide instead of the Prima guide. MUCH more complete.

Best Deals for Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness

When I first read the online reviews about this game, I was really hesitant to buy it. Every review I read was negative, and seemed to concentrate on how you couldn't catch wild pokemon. This was very discouraging, because catching wild pokemon was the main reason I was going to buy XD. Anyway, I bought the game (after talking to the experts...my nephews), and I am here to tell you, that all the reviews are wrong (RTFM) you CAN catch wild pokemon. Granted, the way you catch them is not the same as in GBA games, but would you really expect the same thing on a 3-D GameCube game as you would on a GBA game? I hope not. You expect something different when you move from a handheld system to a home console. It's like comparing apples and oranges. They are meant to be different. The main issue is that the GBA games have been around forever, and people have gotten used to the same old way of doing things. If can learn to accept the fact that some things change as they get better, you will love this game.

That being said, here are 10 main differences between XD and Colosseum:

1. You start out with one level 10 base evolution pokemon (Eevee) instead of two higher level, already evolved pokemon. (I like this because it gives you the oppurtunity to chose the evolution of your Eevee and also allows you to power up "from the bottom").

2. You don't have to go to a friggin computer to save the game. You can save anywhere anytime. That was a BIG improvement.

3. Purifing pokemon is made a lot easier. The cool new thing with this is the purification chamber. Theoretically, you can purify 15 shadow pokemon at once (9 in the chamber 6 in your party).....not going to go into more detail...buy the game...check it out.

4. You don't have to wait until the end of the game to catch shadow pokemon you accidently knocked out (They brought back Miror B for this).

5. Pokemon storage system has been updated to be easier to use.

6. Music and XF are WAY better in XD than in Colosseum. They have also updated the move animations (and the trainers do a cheesy "rats" air punch when you hurt their pokemon).

7. You do not have a constant partner tagging along with you throughout the whole game.

8. Overall story is longer than Colosseum

9. Pokemon spots...you CAN catch wild pokemon. Once you progress enough in the game, you will be able to go to Pokemon spots and put out food (kind of like putting a pokeblock in a feeder at the safari in the GBA games). Go on about your business, and sooner or later, you get a beep on your P*DA saying a wild pokemon has appeared. Go catch it!

10. Shadow pokemon in Colosseum only know one move when you catch them and have a state called Hyper mode. The one move has recoil and hyper mode increases your critical hit ratio. In XD, the shadow pokemon have at least 2 moves when you catch them. One is a physical attack, the other is a stat modifier. The actual attacks vary. I have seen 7 different physical attacks and about 5 different stat modifier attacks. Also, the attacks do not have recoil. When you enter reverse mode (hyper mode in colosseum), it does not seem to raise your critical hit ratio, but you do recieve damage after every turn your pokemon stays in reverse mode. I guess this compensates for the no recoil attacks.

All in all, XD beats Colosseum hands down. It keeps the good parts of Colosseum and changes the bad parts. As for if XD beats the GBA games......don't get me started.

Honest reviews on Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness

Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness is the sequel to Pokemon Colosseum. (I think the "XD" stands for "Extra Dimension".)

It's not a "Pokemon Stadium"-type game; it's like Story Mode in Pokemon Colosseum.

The plot involves the unexpected return of Cipher, five years after its defeat in Colosseum. Cipher has returned with a vengeance, as is evidenced by its suddenly showing up with a massive Shadow Lugia. The Lugia steals a ship transporting Pokémon one night, causing numerous news reports, and when it turns out that Cipher is involved, a young boy with great Pokemon Trainer skills sets out to save the day from the bad guys.

Here are the pros:

1. You can now save wherever you want, like in the Game Boy Advance games! WAHOO!

2. The graphics have been improved since Colosseum. There are a lot of really nicely done "cutscenes", and the trainers react to what's happening in the battle--

i. e. the trainers act triumphant if they win, frustrated and/or anguished if they lose, etc.

3. The music and sound effects are quite good, as is the writing.

4. There is a lot to this game--I like games with a lot in them (unless I'm really anxious to find out what happens at the end).

5. Not terribly violent--if a character is defeated in battle, they just faint (they never die or anything like that. Actually, this holds true for all Pokemon games, and I think it's a really nice touch).

Cons:

1. Like with Colosseum, you can't play as a girl. But I really like the character you get to play as, so it's not really that much of a problem. (He looks like Lan Hikari from MegaMan Battle Network.) I also imagine it would be really hard to have to animate the entire game twice over--once with the girl character and once with the guy character--so it's sort of understandable.

2. You can't revisit cutscenes. Really, though, this is true for almost all video games, but still, I'd like to be able to see them again.

3. If you want to start a new game, it erases everything you did. I can't stand this, and it unfortunately holds true for all Pokemon games. They should let you start a new game and keep the one you have in progress at the same time. (AAAAAAAARRRRGGGGGHHHHH!!!!!!)

In conclusion, Pokemon XD: Gale Of Darkness is a must-have for any Pokemon fan, and the expense is well worth it.

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This game is adventurous and fun. You can kick Cipher bu**. You have to capture and purify shadow pokemon. After playing a while you can enable Pokemon trading with your GBA games. However, you can't trade shadow pokemon. You can also battle with GBAs if you have the right cable. The game has a story line and you might have to go online to find clues when you get stuck or buy the guide. It's not easy to purify Lugia. Once you snag Lugia that is. XD is a lot like the GBA Pokemon games but the graphics are much much better and you have to catch shadow pokemon and purify them in order to purify Lugia. You can still trade with your friends if they have Pokemon GBA games like Ruby or Emerald. The GBA games have to have access to the Hall of Fame before they can start trading. This game is a lot of fun if you are already a fan of the Pokemon games. There is enough new stuff and things to do and a new story line to keep you interested for hours and hours of fun.

Discount KontrolFreek GamerPack RECON

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I play COD MW3 and I heard about these little guys and thought they were a gimmick, but Something made me try them. I bought this pack because I wanted to see which one works better for me since I mostly use AR's. I put the original FPS freek on my right stick and haven't taken it off since. ALMOST EVERY SINGLE ROUND I RECEIVED THE MOST HEADSHOT REWARD. I was flabbergasted. The trick to these: you have to turn your sensitivity up high so not only can you spin around like a tornado but you still have precise control over your weapon when lining up a shot. It's beautiful. I would recommend these if you're already a somewhat decent player but just need that little edge to take you over the top.

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Let me first start of by saying that I already consider myself an above average player at Call of Duty. I have a 3.8 K/D in Black Ops, and a 2.4 K/D in MW3. This surely isn't amazing but above average.

I purchased the FPS Freek Recon because I didn't know which would be better for me: the CQC, or the Original.

FPS FREEK-----------------------------

So I actually received this from my friend a year ago, but I used them once, thought they were stupid, and gave them away. A couple months later, I realized that my analog sticks were very slippery, and I felt the need for grips.

This takes getting used to. I approximately took 3 or 4 hours to finally get the hang of it.

What the FPS Freek does is that it extends the analog stick, so that if you are playing on a 10 sensitivity, you will be able to move the stick more precisely. I was originally playing on a 6 sensitivity, but I have upped it to 8 with this purchase.

IT DOES NOT MAKE YOU A BETTER PLAYER! It basically just gives you the opportunity to spin like a tornado, and move precisely at the same time.

By the way, for the PS3 controller, it touches the D-PAD at times, but not too big of a deal.

It definitely adds grip to the stick. The CQC is better if you're just looking for grip.

FPS FREEK CQC----------------------------

These definitely feel better to use if you're looking for "grip". They are flatter, which means they will not change your game too much.

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Purchased this after multiple recommendations from gamer friends to see if it would assist. The item has assisted greatly in overall accuracy with large tip on right directional stick and smaller tip on left directional stick. Greatly improved overall grip as well. Thanks for a great product KontrolFreek!

Honest reviews on KontrolFreek GamerPack RECON

A really great little accessory that increases your range of movement with the sticks. It takes a few hours to really get used to them, but once you do you'll never go back. You'll really notice an improvement in your ability to track moving targets at range. And they're also great for racing game too!

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once you try them you wont want anything else, my son says it feels funny when you don't use them, so I will buy them and the price is great

Buy DreamGEAR DualMount for Xbox 360 and Wii

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List Price: $24.99
Sale Price: $15.40
Today's Bonus: 38% Off

It comes with a wall mount too, so you don't have to put it on the TV if you don't want to. Comes with rubber spacers for use with the newest ultra thin TVs too. It's built well, high quality. The price is good too. I recommend it if this is what you are looking for. I've read that some of the copycat makers of this mount made cheaper models.... the savings on those don't make it worth the risk.

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I forgot to measure my tv to see if this would fit on top. Sure enough it did fit! I only wanted to get this version because I didn't want my tv looking like a robot. And I don't have plans to get the PS3, but if I do I will definitely order again! Save yourself the money and go this route, others I know have spent $100-$150 on a mount to hold a few gaming bars....

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Wasn't big enough to fit on top of my Sony Bravia television but it works perfect on the wall. I love it.

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Placed this on top of my flatscreen TV and has not moved or fell off since I put it on.

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we have a 60+ in tv and have been having trouble setting up the Kinect to train (NIke KInect)

I was a little worried it was to high but the layout of this bracket allowed the kinect and the Wii to work clean and comfortably

Reviews of Skylanders Spyro's Adventure Camo

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Camo is a wingless dragon. He was born under the Tree of Life, or was it the Tree of Everscence? Whatever. Anyway, his primary attack is to shoot out concentrated life energy in the form of a small, bolt of "sun". His secondary attack is to slam his tail on the ground, creating a vine that moves forward. On the vines, there are what looks like tomatoes (they could be something else, but since their red, and circular, I'll call them tomatoes, forgive me if I'm wrong) grow and explode on enemies. His third attack makes him dive into the ground, while underground, a ring of melons grow around where he used to be. Then, the melons blast off, and EXPLODE.

These are his upgrade paths:

Vine Virtuoso: Martial Bounty(create more exploding tomatoes for each vine) Peppers of Potency(firecracker vine does more damage Proliferation(2 vines)

Melon Master: Ring of Might(makes more melons) Melon GMO(increased damage) Melon Fortress(hide in melon ring, then send them flying)

Soul Gem: orbiting sun shield(make a blast of life energy circle around you, doing damage to foes who come too close, at least that's what I think it does)

Overall, Camo is a well-rounded character. He blasts enemies with miniture suns, and can wipe out a line of enemies with the firecracker vine ability. If you're surrounded, you can rely on an orbiting sun shield, or making a ring of melons that wipes out your surrounding enemies.

By the way, don't order from here and wait impatiently for weeks, instead wait a few days, and on a Wednesday, or Friday, make a visit to Toysrus, it's when they have new shipments, therefore giving you a better chance.

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I absolutely agree! Activision has not even released Camo on the skylanders universe, therefore this might mean that this small number of Camos and Warnados that have been found in Walmarts is only a teaser. I'm sure soon you'll see an outbreak in there numbers in the next coming weeks so don't waste $50 on a $9 video game toy!

You want proof it'll drop? Alright. Only a few weeks ago, Cynder was so hot off the shelves people were selling them for $40 and constantly they were being sold for that asking price, if you notice now due to Activision distributing Cynder more and more the price has dropped all the way down to $9 and I've even seen it as low as $7.99! Maek is correct, if you wait to buy camo (which I know a lot of people are dying to get him) Activison will release more and more dragging the prices down on every site! So why not wait the extra few weeks? You're pockets will be happy and hey you'll have some extra money for the next wave of Skylanders.

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From what I hear, Camo is a powerhouse in Skylanders just like Warnado. He's the last Life Element character to be released before Giants comes out in the fall, but...he's pretty much impossible to find anywhere for whatever reason.

Take it from a college student who plays this game and has wasted countless hours hunting and calling: Find Camo online and buy it. Not on ebay, but either on here (Preorder is perfect) or on another site. I'd much rather lean onto the preorder here; I preordered another character on Toys R Us' website, only to have it cancelled because they apparently couldn't keep up with the demand. (I preordered VERY early during the short time it was available online)

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This, along with Warnado and Wham-Shell, are just now entering into stores.

Camo marks the completion of the Life Element character collection and he has some fairly cool abilities (not to mention that he's arguably one of the best looking characters in the game!). He creates fruits and vegetables that explode once they become ripe; a pretty hilarious power! He can also summon vines that explode with fiery effect to take out his enemies.

And once again, scalpers are snatching them up.

Keep several things in mind:

1. Activision has stepped up production and a lot of previously hard-to-find characters are becoming common sights.

2. Activision is not stupid and will not turn a profit down. THEY WILL MAKE MORE. They're not going to turn down a profit, even if it means that profit is sold to idiotic opportunists.

What is starting to become funny is that now that some of the older Skylanders are becoming more commonplace on Amazon (and elsewhere), these scalpers are being forced to reduce their prices below retail. OOPS! Keep it up and stop buying from opportunists, wherever they may lie. It's a pretty sad economy when people are making money like this off of children's toys. It's a free market, but that simply means that you don't have to buy from THEM. Be patient and buy them for retail.

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Camo is a cute Life Element Dragon from the Skylanders characters. My daughter gets a big kick out of his exploding melons attack. He gets extra points for being a dragon.

Best UFC 2010 Undisputed Game Deals

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List Price: $59.99
Sale Price: $26.89
Today's Bonus: 55% Off

This game is pretty awesome. Build a fighter, become more experienced and make your way to the top ranks. Also, there is online mode and other offline moss and versus. It's a good game, very fun too.

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Ultra Series - 10ft High Speed HDMI Cable with Ethernet M/M Reviews

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This cable is working as promised. Though i didnt read reviews of this 10ft one, but similar looking same make 6ft cable had great reviews. I took risk to have 10 ft cable for myself.

Oh boy, it works great. The picture , sound is as clear i could see possible.

Great quality. We always love Quality, but we go for cheaper price.

This one has Quality and Cheaper price ;)).

No need to go for 25$ OR 50$ or Higher cables.

Even if you wish to spend that much, I would highly recommend you to try this one first.

Chances are you would never opt for that one.

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Great 3D picture with my Samsung 3D Blu ray player and Sceptre 3D TV. Great price, great cable. Every bit as good as Monster.

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I also have ordered 6.6 ft HDMI cables they are soft easily manageable. Performance is compareable with the shorter cable.

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To ends are so fat it hard to plug in more then one in a row its a tight fit on my tv

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i was worried that these being so cheap that they'd be terrible and break. had these for a good while now and havent faltered yet. great bargin!

Discount FIFA Soccer 2004

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List Price: $29.99
Sale Price: $14.99
Today's Bonus: 50% Off

FIFA 2004 seeks to improve on 2003's version to compete with many competitors' games. EA always has the edge on licensing (hundreds of teams and thousands of authentic players), but as always, the ultimate test is the gameplay.

Gameplay was a bit arcadey last year. This year EA completely changed the gameplay to make it a bit more realistic. Ball physics seem more authentic. Defenses are tougher to crack. Scoring is really tough, but when you do it is usually a thing of beauty.

However, I still have a problem with the controls. The right thumbstick is used for the "freestyle control" dribble moves, but they are still to slow to engage. In real soccer you control the ball and use dribble moves to react to the defender and keep the ball away from him. Unfortunately these "freestyle" moves take so long to engage that the defender has already taken the ball. The fatal flaw in the control is that you have to predict the defender instead of react.

Also on the subject of controls, they changed the buttons for forward runs for off the ball players. In last year's version you could push the left trigger and send a man on a run toward open space... simple. In so doing, you stretch the defense and find an opening for a pass or dribble. This year, the controls are so difficult they are almost impossible to use in a functional way. You have to press four buttons just to get a player to go on a run! The sequence is: Left trigger, white button, right thumbstick, lob button. By the time you've accomplished that, the defender has certainly taken the ball away from you.

All in all, controls alternate between feeling muddy/slow and twitchy/over-precise. The game expects you to be perfect when you're directing a pass or shot. If you hold the thumbstick just a hair off, your shot will go sailing away, posing more danger to the corner flag than the goal.

On the positive side, EA added a new sequence for corner kicks and set plays that are so unique and cool they act like a mini-game. You choose your target for the kick, and then you take control of the recipient as he jostles for position. It is simple to learn but tough to get the goal, so it is really satisfying when you score.

Also, I love the fact that EA is finally giving us a career mode for FIFA. It is a five-year coaching simulation where you have certain criteria to get contract renewals. There is a lot of depth with training and transfers of players.

It's kind of high maintenance though... your players get out of shape if you play them too much, so it's almost impossible to keep a consistent lineup. I'm not even talking about injuries, just guys playing one game a week. It seems pretty heavy handed to me. You have to rotate guys every single game, and the menus aren't the easiest to navigate, so it's going to seriously hurt the addiction factor that could keep you going. Nothing like navigating stupid menus to make you want to turn off the game, ya know?

The features within Career Mode are confusing too. Training individual players fills in green bars in their attributes, but the attributes never go up. General training of the whole team doesn't seem to do anything at all. The transfer market is confusing and expensive to learn through trial and error.

Another thing I miss is a player editor. Now I'm not saying I want to make a team full of 99-rated Ronaldos, but I want to be able to tweak attributes a little. I also want to change the appearance of some players on my favorite clubs because EA gave them blond hair when it should have been black hair.

But the game looks absolutely beautiful. Last year's game looked good, but now lighting is tons better, and mo-cap animations are totally sweet. The in-game cinematics (like when someone scores or someone else gets a yellow card) are really cool. Sometimes the ref will give a red card and about five guys from each team will start fighting and shoving. Goal celebrations are really well done and usually show at least three members of the scoring team.

So, in review...

+ Licensing tons of real teams and players

+ Cinematics and animations look tremendous

+ Some aspects of gameplay are better

+ Career Mode... finally!

Controls are complex and feel muddy

Menus are horrible to navigate

Career Mode is confusing

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How do they keep doing it? By that I mean, how do they keep making this game worse year after year?

The game itself is beautiful when you get on the pitch. Again, like last year, it's almost like watching real tv when you're playing.

Team depth and selection are super. They've got three English divisions and two German divisions, two Italian divisions. This is great for the career mode where you can take a team from a lower division and try to get them moved up into the big leagues next year.

It's too bad all of this is ruined in the actual gameplay. FIFA used to be a ton of fun to play a few years ago. Each year though the gameplay seems to get worse. It seems like you have to learn a brand new game each year.

The controls are quite bad this year. I never feel in control of the ball. Shooting/scoring is difficult.

Breaking down defenses is difficult even in the default setting. Part of this is because sending guys on runs is downright impossible. They took it off of the left trigger and moved it into a complicated sequence of buttons. (So now the left trigger is used as the 'Walk' function ooooh I so needed that!!!!)

I found this year's version extremely frustrating as in throw-down-your-controller-and-turn-off-the-stupid-xbox-frustrating. It's so bad I'm to the point of not even wanting to try to get better at it yes, I think it's thaaaat bad.

EA, you've done a great job ruining a great franchise. Rent this one first if you can find it available to rent!

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This game is great!!!! I must warn you, Off-The-Ball will take some time to master. Once you learn how to use it, you'll be making Beckham-like pinpoint crosses when you're attacking. But over all, the game looks and feels more realistic. Especially when you see all the famous players.

4.5/5 Stars. The only thing keeping this from a perfect game is the right analog stick again. It's highly useful for using Off-The-Ball control. But it still needs to be worked on for doing step-overs and stuff like that. They need to fix that for 2005.

Honest reviews on FIFA Soccer 2004

Being a 3rd generation Arsenal supporter I couldn't wait to get my hands on this game to have my own showdowns against Man Utd in my living room! The last of this series I played was FIFA 95 back in the 90's and though it was like Pac Man compared to this installment it was sooooo much fun.

I'm not going to detail the specs of the game and the features because there are dozens of reviews which already cover that. I will however attest to the playability and the fun factor. Before buying this game I kept reading reviews with complaints about how the game franchise was going down and getting worse and that the controls were virtually unplayable. I nearly didn't buy this game but decided to buy it anyway and give it a try with the knowledge I could return it within 24 hrs if it was a bust.

Well I bought it yesterday and played it for nearly 8 hours straight! Without even reading the manual I just played a few practice games to get a hang of what the controls are doing and bingo it was game on! While I will agree that some of the controls are not as ergonomoically well placed, I actually recall the FIFA 95 controls being a bit strange as well, until you get used to them. It didn't take me long to figure out how to start playing and winning and while the goals are harder to come by, they are not impossible to score and it is a definate bonus that the game is made tougher and more realistic.

As somebody said before with the goals being harder to come by it brings a sense of realism to the experience whereby when you do score it's a real celebration! I haven't even begun to explore 1/10th of all the features of this game yet and I'm happy to give it 4 stars. I think a poor choice from EA was to ommit a World Cup Tournament!!

What you need to know is whether this game rocks or not and whether you should buy it?

Answer = YES!

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I thought this was definitely the best Fifa yet. The gameplay is awesome. All these people whining about how it is too hard either just really suck at video games or have no clue about the dynamics of soccer. After you play the game for a while you pick up on what works and what doesn't. The fact that they expanded the team selection by adding the lower divisions is freaking sweet. I love the career mode too because it is realistic. In the older Fifa games as long as you had enough money to buy a player then that was all she wrote. He was yours. Now you have to bid on players and risk losing points that could be spent elsewhere. I agree with other people say about the free kicks. It is almost impossible to score. You get one in every now and then. The "off the ball control" I think sucks too. I never use it. You don't have to use it to be successful but I don't even know why it is there. The left trigger for off the ball runs was much better. To wrap it up. The most realistic and best Fifa yet.